Merrimack County, New Hampshire

Merrimack County, New Hampshire
Location in the state of New Hampshire
New Hampshire's location in the U.S.
Founded	1823
Seat	Concord
Largest city	Concord
Area  - Total  - Land  - Water	956.60 sq mi (2,478 km²) 934.43 sq mi (2,420 km²) 22.17 sq mi (57 km²), 2.31%
Population  - (2010)  - Density	146,445 158/sq mi (61/km²)
Website	www.merrimackcounty.net/

Merrimack County is a county in the U.S. state of New Hampshire. In 2010 the population was 146,445.^[1] Its county seat is Concord, the state capital. The center of population of New Hampshire is located in Merrimack County, in the town of Pembroke.^[2]

Merrimack County was organized at Concord in 1823, and is named for the Merrimack River.^[3] It was formed by removing towns from northern Hillsborough and Rockingham counties. In 1841 its original scope was somewhat reduced by the creation of Belknap County.^[4]

Geography

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 956 square miles (2,476 km²), of which 934 sq mi (2,419 km²) is land and 22 sq mi (57 km²) (2.31%) is water.

Adjacent counties

• Belknap County (northeast)
• Strafford County (east)
• Rockingham County (southeast)
• Hillsborough County (south)
• Sullivan County (west)
• Grafton County (northwest)

National protected area

• John Hay National Wildlife Refuge

Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1830	34,614		—
1840	36,253		4.7%
1850	40,337		11.3%
1860	41,408		2.7%
1870	42,151		1.8%
1880	46,300		9.8%
1890	49,435		6.8%
1900	52,430		6.1%
1910	53,335		1.7%
1920	51,770		−2.9%
1930	56,152		8.5%
1940	60,710		8.1%
1950	63,022		3.8%
1960	67,785		7.6%
1970	80,925		19.4%
1980	98,302		21.5%
1990	120,005		22.1%
2000	136,225		13.5%
2010	146,445		7.5%
[5][6][7]

As of the census^[8] of 2000, there were 136,225 people, 51,843 households, and 35,460 families residing in the county. The population density was 146 people per square mile (56/km²). There were 56,244 housing units at an average density of 60 per square mile (23/km²). The racial makeup of the county was 97.08% White, 0.54% Black or African American, 0.23% Native American, 0.86% Asian, 0.02% Pacific Islander, 0.23% from other races, and 1.04% from two or more races. 1.00% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 16.5% were of English, 13.4% Irish, 12.7% French, 11.0% French Canadian, 8.4% American, 6.4% German and 6.0% Italian ancestry according to Census 2000. 94.2% spoke English, 2.9% French and 1.1% Spanish as their first language.

There were 51,843 households out of which 33.90% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 54.90% were married couples living together, 9.80% had a female householder with no husband present, and 31.60% were non-families. 24.60% of all households were made up of individuals and 9.00% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.51 and the average family size was 3.00.

In the county the population was spread out with 24.90% under the age of 18, 8.10% from 18 to 24, 30.60% from 25 to 44, 24.00% from 45 to 64, and 12.40% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 38 years. For every 100 females there were 97.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 93.70 males.

The median income for a household in the county was $48,522, and the median income for a family was $56,842. Males had a median income of $37,722 versus $27,207 for females. The per capita income for the county was $23,208. About 4.10% of families and 5.90% of the population were below the poverty line, including 6.60% of those under age 18 and 5.70% of those age 65 or over.

Politics

Presidential election results^[9]

Year	Democrat	Republican
2008	56.3% 45,078	42.5% 34,010
2004	52.2% 39,975	47.1% 36,060
2000	48.1% 30,622	47.1% 30,028

Cities, towns, and villages

Allenstown Andover Boscawen Bow Bradford Canterbury Chichester Concord Penacook (a village of Concord) Danbury Dunbarton Epsom Franklin Henniker Hill Hooksett South Hooksett (a village of Hooksett)

Hopkinton Contoocook (a village of Hopkinton) Loudon New London Elkins (a village of New London) Newbury Northfield Tilton-Northfield, New Hampshire, a census-designated place spanning the centers of both towns Pembroke Suncook (a village of Pembroke) Pittsfield Salisbury Sutton Warner Webster Wilmot

* Villages are named settlements that have no separate corporate existence from the towns they are in.

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Merrimack County, New Hampshire

References

1. ^ United States Census Bureau, American FactFinder, 2010 Census figures. Retrieved March 23, 2011.
2. ^ http://www.census.gov/geo/www/cenpop/statecenters.txt
3. ^ http://home.att.net/~local_history/NH-Merrimack_Co.htm
4. ^ http://home.att.net/~local_history/NH-Belknap_Co.htm
5. ^ http://www.census.gov/population/www/censusdata/cencounts/files/nh190090.txt
6. ^ http://factfinder2.census.gov/faces/tableservices/jsf/pages/productview.xhtml?pid=DEC_10_PL_QTPL&prodType=table
7. ^ http://mapserver.lib.virginia.edu/
8. ^ "American FactFinder". United States Census Bureau. http://factfinder.census.gov. Retrieved 2008-01-31. 
9. ^ "Dave Leip's Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections". http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/. Retrieved 2011-06-11. 

External links

• Merrimack County official website
• National Register of Historic Places listing for Merrimack County

Coordinates: 43°18′N 71°41′W / 43.30°N 71.68°W / 43.30; -71.68